Today’s Target: The Lipo-flavonoid Tinnitus Treatment

Lipo-flavonoid is a proprietary blend containing eriodictyol glycoside, bioflavonoids, vitamin B6 and B12 (B complex), vitamin C, niacin, riboflavin, thiamine, choline, inositol, and pantothenic acid, all of which are vitamins, mainly B vitamins. Eriodicytol glycoside is an extract from citrus bioflavonoid.

Is the product or company an obvious scam?

The company is DSE Healthcare Solutions and it is lead by five former Johnson & Johnson executives. They develop and market products for specialty health conditions. They seem to be on the up and up. No “obvious” scam here… BUT (you knew that was coming!)…

Is the company guilty of deceptive marketing?

Okay, though the company seems to be your run-of-the-mill health product company, there is some deception that I had to point out. Lipo-flavonoid is being marketed by DSE as a “tinnitus” relief product. It’s also being marketed to help those with Meniere’s disease. This is where things get a little sticky.

You see, years ago, a study showed that lipo-flavonoid was able to calm the symptoms of some people who suffered from Meniere’s disease, which is a rare disease that involves the swelling of the small fluid-filled chambers of the inner ear. This causes vertigo, loss of hearing, loss of balance and tinnitus.

Now, one might make the assumption (and this is what they are hoping) that if lipo-flavonoid can help calm tinnitus in people with Meniere’s, then it must also calm tinnitus that has other causes beyond Meniere’s. Nope. Keep reading.

Does the health product live up to it’s claims?

While lipo-flavonoid may help those with Meniere’s, it has not been proven to help people with other causes of tinnitus (noise-induced damage, medications). In fact, one study showed that subjects with hearing problems with other causes (noise, age, undetermined) had NO improvement when given a component of Lipo-flavonoid that was 4x’s the strength of the recommended dosage. The only person in the study who had any improvement was one in the control group who was given a placebo (1).

Likely, this is because Meniere’s disease may have something to do with a sort of allergic reaction in which histamines cause the inflammation of the inner ear. The bioflavonoids in Lipo-flavonoid have an anti-histamine reaction in the body, which relieves some cases of Meniere’s.

Tinnitus, on the other hand, is caused by free radical damage that interferes with proper noise signaling. The brain sends noise signals (buzzing, ringing) to try to compensate for this damage.

However, as your health hound, I have to point out that Lipo-flavonoid does have the ability to fight free radical damage. Now, depending on the rest of your diet and exposure to free radicals, this action may eventually have some effect on tinnitus or at least stave off more damage.

BUT (again with the but), there are plenty of other more potent anti-oxidant supplements on the market. AND you need to follow a healthy diet and avoid excessive free radical exposure (loud noise, smoking, chemicals etc.).

Does the product have any dangerous side effects?

Overall, the product does not have any dangerous side effects. If you are taking Tamoxifen for cancer, avoid all citrus bioflavonoids as they can inhibit the tumor-fighting effect of Tamoxifen. If you’ve been advised for any reason to avoid citrus, you should also avoid Lipo-flavonoid.

What does the Better Business Bureau say about the company?

DSE Healthcare is not backed by the BBB. They received a B- rating for the following reasons:

• BBB does not have sufficient information to determine how long this business has been operating.
• BBB does not have sufficient background information on this business.

Rather benign…

What are people saying about the product or company on blogs and forums?

From MedKB.com:
Lipo-flavonoid  Yes/No?

I have been seeing a lot of commercials about this product, and I was
wondering if anyone here has had any success with it?

Reply:

I have been trying it now for one month, 2-pills three times daily. So far
no appreciable improvement. I’ll try for total of three months. This stuff
is expensive.

From DailyStrength.org:

I started using lipo-flavonoid about a week ago. I don’t know if I’m getting used to this high pitched ringing sound or the lipo-flavonoid is helping. The intensity of my tinnitus seems to be less…(even at night). Anyone with any lipo-flavonoid experience? – John K

Reply:

JohnK and Steppinwolf..
Not to pee on your parade, but all 5 ent’s that ive seen said u may as well throw your money in a pig pen and holler.. soooieee!! I tried it for 3 months anyway and got zero! and it is pretty costly too. I hope it works for ya man!! – a1a

Does the company sell any other “questionable” products?

DSE Healthcare also sells the following products:

Certain Dri: Recommended by doctors (according to their website) for excessive underarm sweating.

Cystex: An OTC supplement for relieving the burning symptoms of a UTI (urinary tract infection) and controlling the infection “while waiting to see the doctor.” The product does not claim to cure the infection.

Albolene Moisturizing Cleanser: Make-up remover.

Anti Monkey Butt Powder: This one gets a couple of bones for a great product name! This is a powder to absorb moisture for those who have to sit for lengthy periods of time. It’s meant to keep the skin from chaffing.

The underarm product, cleanser and monkey butt powder (can you tell I like the name?) are not at all scammy sounding. Whether they work better than what you might find at your local store is unknown.

The Cystex, though not marketed as a UTI “cure” may be misconstrued by those who cannot afford to go to the doctor. I think it would be better if they highlighted the fact that it is NOT a cure and UTI’s should be taken seriously as they can lead to kidney infections and even systemic infections if not properly treated.

All products are moderately and fairly priced.

References:

1. Creston JE, Gillespie MR, Larson AL. Bioflavonoid therapy in sensori-neural hearing loss. A double-blind study. Trans AM Acad Opthalmol Otolaryngol. 1966 Sep-Oct;70(5):825-40.

National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders. Meniere’s Disease. Available online. Accessed February 25, 2010.

So, What’s The Verdict?

My problem with Lipo-Flavonoid is the fact that it’s behind marketed as a Tinnitus Treatment when in fact it’s only a treatment for Meniere’s Disease which is one of the lesser causes of Tinnitus. Most who suffer from Tinnitus do so because of noise-induced damage or exposure to certain medications. For this reason I cannot recommend Lipo-Flavonoid to anyone unless they have been diagnosed with Meniere’s.

There is a great alternative to Lipo-Flavonoid that my pack loves. Unlike Lipo-Flavonoid, this program is not scam. It’s a 100% free report I’ve put together that teaches you several proven methods to eliminate your tinnitus. In the Health Hound’s opinion, I would say that it’s a no-brainer not to at least give this free report a try.

Click Here To Read The Health Hound’s Tinnitus Report!